Ah, hell. Every Tom, Dick, and Harry decided to drop trailers for their mega-blockbuster these past two weeks. Must be another Star Wars December. This time, it's Ernest Cline's heavyweight pop culture champion Ready Player One, the bestselling book given life via the man who helped generate a large part of the very fan fervor his sci-fi adventure sought to invoke - famed director Steven Spielberg. And with this second extended look at the film, we have a ton of new iconic characters, images, and music cues to add to the growing pile that has nerds of all ages adjusting in their seats. Among these totemic titans is the anime super-robot tearing up the skies in a battle for the Oasis. No, it's not Voltron, like so many have misidentified him as. And no, it's not the Iron Giant, though he ...

The armored hunters of the Garo universe reunite for one more blood-soaked battle against the demonic horde in Garo: Kaminokiba (Garo: Divine Fang), the film sequel focusing on Makai Knight Ryuga from the Garo: The One Who Shines in the Darkness television series. And his enemy for this installment in the action-horror saga, reprising his role from previous entries, is Inoue Masahiro, known to many fans of the tokusatsu subgenre as the dimension-hopping title hero of Kamen Rider Decade. Still making frenemies in strange places, I see, Tsukasa!
https://youtu.be/ayNMVvp2Vsc
Garo mastermind Amemiya Keita returns to the franchise once more for writing and directing duties, serenaded by JAM Project, who provides the new theme song "Kaminokiba - The Fang of the Apocalypse" from their latest ...

Let your geek flag fly with these Power Rangers themed t-shirts. From the pop culture alchemists of RIPT Apparel, these pieces make the perfect gift to yourself or to that special Ranger fan in your life this holiday season. For years, RIPT has made it their business to find every angle for the enthusiastic nerd to express their fandom and capitalize on that passion, lovingly mixing and matching various bits of fan culture. Here's a sample of their work with the spandex-clad heroes of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.
Keen eyes may quickly notice a few shoutouts to other titles in the greater sci-fi and fantasy community in these works. Most notably references to Godzilla, Star Wars, and Game of Thrones, to name a few.
If you're wondering where the rest of the Ranger franchise is, ...

I was determined not to come back with another Uchuu Sentai Kyuranger review that talked predominately about lead character Lucky, but it seems my fate was written in the constellations. This show, about a team of futuristic space trekkers boldly going up against the Jark Matter Empire, quickly became a new favorite for me, winning me over with its adventurous theme, great characters, and fun ideas. To this day, my feelings in that regard have not changed. Though I suppose I've squished those sentiments into a tiny side pocket now that the show has so aggressively pursued one of Super Sentai's worst habits: Putting an inordinate amount of attention onto the dude in red.
The luckiest liberator in the whole wide universe is not only the unofficially official leader of this enormous team...

Fan films are tricksy. Especially those based upon anime properties, which themselves come with a style and a vibe that seems near impossible to replicate without sacrificing something that makes the original great. And yet, those of us who love these titles, who have the passion to express that adoration creatively, keep persisting. With this in mind, we dive into Dragon Ball Z: Light of Hope, the new fan film release that dropped this week to a crowd of eager viewers.
Based upon the wildly popular Dragonball franchise, its genesis in the manga series from famed creator Akira Toriyama, which then went on to become one of the most widely-known Japanese animated titles in the medium's history, with several sequels and countless films and specials. Light of Hope takes is cues from The H...

The war for the Iron Throne just got a little more epic, with this fun opening credits sequence from French Youtuber Malec. Inspired by the wildly popular fantasy drama series Game of Thrones, this interprets the battle to save Westeros, and the many dramatic turns it takes, in a fashion only Japanese animation can deliver. Or at least something like it. Check out the fan-made opening credits sequence here, but newcomers be warned. There be spoilers in these waters.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efD3nmwF-IM
I love that the music, while evoking the typical sound of classic anime openers, also adopts the style of the actual Game of Thrones theme, one of the most iconic of its kind. Interspersing Japanese lyrics with seemingly random English adds the perfect touch. Particularly the phra...

The Star Wars saga continues with the latest trailer for Star Wars: The Last Jedi, second in the new Skywalker trilogy, returning us to a galaxy far, far away at a time of great unrest. Director Rian Johnson steps up to the plate to bring us another taste of the visual feast coming this December. And when the last trailer ends with a grizzled Luke claiming that the famed heroes known as the Jedi must end, it has a lot to live up to.
Not only does The Last Jedi have the responsibility of carrying on the torch passed on from The Force Awakens, JJ Abrams' first chapter in the trilogy, it must expand upon the characters and their universe in fresh, interesting ways. And it must handle with grace and care what we suspect is the final full performance of Carrie Fisher (General Leia Organa),...

Diverse Japan and other sources are reporting some new details on an upcoming sci-fi, fantasy action adventure straight from Japan. The film is called Travelers: Dimension Police, a film that promises a "Sexy, authentic action movie...no questions asked," and is currently being heralded among fans and bloggers who faithfully watch Tokusatsu televsion shows on a regular basis as a reunion among fellow actors and actresses, and creators who share an historic legacy in their industry.
The upcoming supercharged sexy action thriller will star actress/singer Nao Nagasawa, and actress/model Ayumi Kinoshita in a story about a beautiful lawwoman working for an interdimensional police force, who serendipitously crosses paths with her former partner-turned-enemy, forcing each other to confront the...